Arma III Steam Exclusive

Full Steam Ahead is a developer blog from Bohemia Interactive announcing their plan to release Arma III exclusively on Steam, saying that they feel this is necessary to allow them to release the military shooter sequel this year. They speak of the efficiencies of only have to code for one distribution platform, the benefits of Steamworks, and the protection provided by Steam DRM. They offer the following list of "preemptive answers" to questions they expect this to provoke:

So, when will you release Arma 3 then?
a. "Soon" has become an overused word, but we are preparing all we need to unveil our plans right this moment.

Do I have to run the game through Steam?
a. Yes, it will be required to run the game through Steam. We do not believe in always-online types of DRM however, so Offline mode will be supported.

Will I be able to buy a boxed copy of Arma 3?
a. There will be boxed copies in most regions. These may either be Steam Codes in a retail package, or also contain DVD data (speeding up installation). You will still have to run and update through Steam the first time.

I don't want any of the benefits Steam brings me, so why should I care?
a. There was a very real chance there would be no Arma 3 this year otherwise.